March 1 (Bloomberg) -- Texas would become the first state
to raise the age to buy cigarettes to 21 from 18 as a way to
curtail teenage smoking in a legislative proposal that may
reduce tax collections.

The measure introduced last month covers all tobacco
products and is designed to cut $1.6 billion in Medicaid costs
for providing health care to smokers, according to the author,
state Senator Carlos Uresti, a San Antonio Democrat.

“It’s costing the state hundreds of millions of dollars to
care for the people with smoking-related illnesses,” said
Uresti, 49. “Maybe we can be a leader on this issue.”

Alabama, Alaska, New Jersey and Utah have raised the age to
buy cigarettes to 19, while other states have kept the age at
18, said Thomas Carr, director of national policy for the
American Lung Association in Washington. A proposal introduced
in the Oklahoma House this year would increase the smoking age
to 19.

About 600,000 middle-school students and 3 million high
school students smoke cigarettes, according to U.S. Surgeon
General Regina Benjamin. She has urged policies to reduce teen
smoking. About one of five deaths in the U.S. annually is tied
to smoking, according to the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention in Atlanta.

Raising the purchase age “could have a real impact on
smoking prevalence,” said Maggie Mahoney, deputy director of
the Tobacco Control Legal Consortium, a St. Paul, Minnesota-based group of lawyers that assists tobacco control efforts.
“By reducing the prevalence of smoking in this age group, fewer
young adults will become addicted to cigarettes.”

Cigarette Tax

Texas charges a $1.41 tax on a package of 20 cigarettes.
Increasing the age requirement may result in a sales decline and
reduce revenue by $40 million annually, according to the
Legislative Budget Board, which advises lawmakers.

The Republican-dominated legislature may balk at the
proposal, said Matt Mackowiak, president of Potomac Strategy
Group, a Washington-based political consultant who works for
Texas Republicans. Lawmakers may refuse to give up the revenue
because of “uncertainty about education funding and other big
ticket items,” he said.

The measure, pending before a legislative committee, needs
an explanation of how reduced tax collections would be recouped,
said Mackowiak.

Uresti disputes the $40 million estimate because it doesn’t
consider possible cost savings from reducing the number of
smokers. He said his staff is working with the board to come up
with better estimates.

A few states propose raising the smoking age every year,
said Karmen Hanson, a program manager at the National Conference
of State Legislatures in Denver. No state has raised the age
since 2006, Carr said.

A proposal in Rhode Island to increase the age to 21 died
in the legislature in 2010. Opponents of the measures say 18-year-olds should be able to make their own decisions.

“There’s also a liberty aspect,” Mackowiak said. “You
are an adult when you’re 18.”